Kathmandu, April 2

Nepal Volleyball Association today signed a two-year agreement with Rastriya Banijya Bank as the main sponsor of the Men and Women National Club League Volleyball Tournament.

As per the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) — signed by RBB Chief Executive Officer Kiran Kumar Shrestha and NVA President Manoranjan Raman Sharma — the government-owned bank would provide the volleyball governing body with one million rupees a year to organise the championship.

The third edition of the tournament is slated for April 11-17 at the National Sports Council covered hall. Following the signing, the tournament will be named as the NVA-RBB National Club League Tournament.

“We are happy to be associated with volleyball which is one of the most popular sports in the country,” said RBB CEO Shrestha. “Nepal’s geography is also suitable for the sport as it can be played in all parts of the country,” added Shrestha, who said the sponsorship was a part of the bank’s social responsibility. “The agreement is for two years and we can extend the deal after assessing the response of the tournament over the next two years,” he added.

RBB Chairman Ravindra Prasad Pandey said the bank joined hands with NVA with an objective of helping in the development of volleyball in the country. “We are 100 per cent state-owned bank and people think we do not need marketing. But nothing is absolute in the fast growing economy and we will use the event as a marketing tool and lure people.”

NVA President Sharma said the agreement was the historic one for his association. “RBB believed in us and the sponsorship has put a big responsibility on our shoulder. We will certainly fulfil the target that RBB is trying to achieve through us,” said Sharma.

A total of eight teams will take part in the men’s event, while six teams will vie for the title in the women’s category, informed NVA General Secretary Jitendra Bahadur Chand. The top four teams in both the categories will receive Rs 200,000, Rs 100,000, Rs 50,000 and Rs 25,000 respectively, while the best players will get Rs 15,000 apiece. The best libero, server, blocker, lifter, spiker and coach in both categories will get Rs 5,000 each.

Chand also informed that participating teams, besides departmental sides, will get Rs 40,000 as the preparation money for the tournament. He said the teams were selected as per the ranking of the last year’s National Volleyball League. The estimated budget of the competition is Rs 2.1 million.